twhite
Member
I am having an issue with what looks like sanding dust caking up in the grain of some of my turnings. It seems to be more problematic with lighter woods such as ash, oak, maple and hickory. Maybe I am just not seeing the build up in the darker woods as easily as I do in the lighter ones.
I have been experimenting with several finishing techniques; most recently I have been trying Fangar’s CA method. Results have been good but the woods have all been darker. This past weekend I turned a piece of curly hickory and the build up is quite noticeable. When sanding I start with 150 grit and sand while the lathe is running, then cross sand with the same grit with the lathe off to clean up the deeper, circular scratches. When I am ready for the next step I always wipe the blank with a dry blue shop towel before turning the lathe back on and continue with the next grit. The hickory started showing build up very soon in the sanding process, before the 320 grit. I tried going back down to 150 to clean up the build up but it just won’t go away. In fact it seems to just continue to build up.
I have made several changes to try and prevent this build up. One was to change from a dark paper back sand paper to a lighter, cloth backed sand paper. That helped a little but not enough to stop the build up. I have also tried wiping down with DNA after every step. No change with that either.
Could the blue shop towels be the problem? These are the paper kind you get can get a Walmart or in bulk from Sam’s. Do they tend to “shed†blue lint or dust particles? Are my bushings dirty and need to be cleaned? Perhaps it is a chemical reaction to the metal bushings and the acidity in the wood I am using? Or is it just in the wood itself and some woods are more prone to this than others?
Comments anyone?
I have been experimenting with several finishing techniques; most recently I have been trying Fangar’s CA method. Results have been good but the woods have all been darker. This past weekend I turned a piece of curly hickory and the build up is quite noticeable. When sanding I start with 150 grit and sand while the lathe is running, then cross sand with the same grit with the lathe off to clean up the deeper, circular scratches. When I am ready for the next step I always wipe the blank with a dry blue shop towel before turning the lathe back on and continue with the next grit. The hickory started showing build up very soon in the sanding process, before the 320 grit. I tried going back down to 150 to clean up the build up but it just won’t go away. In fact it seems to just continue to build up.
I have made several changes to try and prevent this build up. One was to change from a dark paper back sand paper to a lighter, cloth backed sand paper. That helped a little but not enough to stop the build up. I have also tried wiping down with DNA after every step. No change with that either.
Could the blue shop towels be the problem? These are the paper kind you get can get a Walmart or in bulk from Sam’s. Do they tend to “shed†blue lint or dust particles? Are my bushings dirty and need to be cleaned? Perhaps it is a chemical reaction to the metal bushings and the acidity in the wood I am using? Or is it just in the wood itself and some woods are more prone to this than others?
Comments anyone?
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